2025 Sandy Lake Region Seed Donation

In 2025, Cara Gardens sent a large seed donation to an Indigenous community in the Sandy Lake region to help support the beginning of a community food-growing project.

The purpose of the donation was to contribute to local food sovereignty by providing seeds and growing information that could help residents produce fresh vegetables, herbs, and traditional plants closer to home. For isolated communities, access to fresh whole foods can be limited, expensive, and inconsistent, so the ability to grow even part of that food locally can become an important step toward seasonal nutrition, skill building, and long-term resilience.

Thousands of seeds were provided through Cara Gardens, along with detailed information for each variety. This included how to grow the plants, how to encourage bolting where seed saving was needed, how to collect and store seed, and how to prepare for future growing seasons. The goal was not only to donate seeds for one season, but to help create a foundation where the community could continue growing, saving, and replanting with less reliance on outside supply.

The project faced serious delays because of the chronic wildfires that initially displaced community members, followed by further destruction and disruption. Because of those challenges, the hope is to see progress made in 2027 when conditions are safer and more stable for the project to continue.

This donation was intended as more than a garden supply drop. It was a way to support access to food, practical education, and community morale. When people have the tools and knowledge to grow food close to home, those skills can be shared between families, neighbours, and future generations.

For Cara Gardens, this project reflected the larger purpose behind the work: sharing plants, seeds, and knowledge in good faith so more people can build confidence, food access, and self-sufficiency through growing.